Unmet Needs Report, July 2006-June 2007

Despite the successes of the Senior Living Program and other efforts of the Iowa Aging Network, there continue to be documented unmet needs throughout the state, in part because of general fund budget reductions. These are needs identified for elderly Iowans that the community service networks are unable to meet. The sources for this data are interdisciplinary teams with the Case Management Program for the Frail Elderly (CMPFE) and service providers under contract with the Area Agencies on Aging. June 2007 Unmet Needs Report May 2007 Unmet Needs Report April 2007 Unmet Needs Report March 2007 Unmet Needs Report February 2007 Unmet Needs Report January 2007 Unmet Needs Report December 2006 Unmet Needs Report November 2006 Unmet Needs Report October 2006 Unmet Needs Report September 2006 Unmet Needs Report August 2006 Unmet Needs Report July 2006 Unmet Needs Report

Hwyneeds: Methodology, Analysis and Evaluation, March 2001

The quadrennial need study was developed to assist in identifying county highway financial needs (construction, rehabilitation, maintenance, and administration) and in the distribution of the road use tax fund (RUTF) among the counties in the state. During the period since the need study was first conducted using HWYNEEDS software, between 1982 and 1998, there have been large fluctuations in the level of funds distributed to individual counties. A recent study performed by Jim Cable (HR-363, 1993), found that one of the major factors affecting the volatility in the level of fluctuations is the quality of the pavement condition data collected and the accuracy of these data. In 1998, the Center for Transportation Research and Education researchers (Maze and Smadi) completed a project to study the feasibility of using automated pavement condition data collected for the Iowa Pavement Management Program (IPMP) for the paved county roads to be used in the HWYNEEDS software (TR-418). The automated condition data are objective and also more current since they are collected in a two year cycle compared to the 10-year cycle used by HWYNEEDS right now. The study proved the use of the automated condition data in HWYNEEDS would be feasible and beneficial in educing fluctuations when applied to a pilot study area. In another recommendation from TR-418, the researchers recommended a full analysis and investigation of HWYNEEDS methodology and parameters (for more information on the project, please review the TR-418 project report). The study reported in this document builds on the previous study on using the automated condition data in HWYNEEDS and covers the analysis and investigation of the HWYNEEDS computer program methodology and parameters. The underlying hypothesis for this study is thatalong with the IPMP automated condition data, some changes need to be made to HWYNEEDS parameters to accommodate the use of the new data, which will stabilize the process of allocating resources and reduce fluctuations from one quadrennial need study to another. Another objective of this research is to investigate the gravel roads needs and study the feasibility of developing a more objective approach to determining needs on the counties gravel road network. This study identifies new procedures by which the HWYNEEDS computer program is used to conduct the quadrennial needs study on paved roads. Also, a new procedure will be developed to determine gravel roads needs outside of the HWYNEED program. Recommendations are identified for the new procedures and also in terms of making changes to the current quadrennial need study. Future research areas are also identified.

Reducing the Problem of Transverse Cracking, HR-232, 1985

The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) is continually improving the pavement management program and striving to reduce maintenance needs. Through a 1979 pavement management study, the Iowa DOT became a participant in a five state Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) study of "Transverse Cracking of Asphalt Pavements". There were numerous conclusions and recommendations but no agreement as to the major factors contributing to transverse cracking or methods of preventing or reducing the occurrence of transverse cracking. The project did focus attention on the problem and generated ideas for research. This project is one of two state funded research projects that were a direct result of the FHWA project. Iowa DOT personnel had been monitoring temperature susceptibility of asphalt cements by the Norman McLeod Modified Penetration Index. Even though there are many variables from one asphalt mix to another, the trend seemed to indicate that the frequency of transverse cracking was highly dependent on the temperature susceptibility. Research project HR-217 "Reducing the Adverse Effects of Transverse Cracking" was initiated to verify the concept. A final report has been published after a four-year evaluation. The crack frequency with the high temperature susceptible asphalt cement was substantially greater than for the low temperature susceptible asphalt cement. An increased asphalt cement content in the asphalt treated base also reduced the crack frequency. This research on prevention of transverse cracking with fabric supports the following conclusions: 1. Engineering fabric does not prevent transverse cracking of asphalt cement concrete. 2. Engineering fabric may retard the occurrence of transverse cracking. 3. Engineering fabric does not contribute significantly to the structural capability of an asphalt concrete pavement.

Feasibility of Using Automated Distress Data in the County Need Study, TR-418, 1998

The purpose of this project was to determine the feasibility of using pavement condition data collected for the Iowa Pavement Management Program (IPMP) as input to the Iowa Quadrennial Need Study. The need study, conducted by the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) every four years, currently uses manually collected highway infrastructure condition data (roughness, rutting, cracking, etc.). Because of the Iowa DOT's 10-year data collection cycles, condition data for a given highway segment may be up to 10 years old. In some cases, the need study process has resulted in wide fluctuations in funding allocated to individual Iowa counties from one study to the next. This volatility in funding levels makes it difficult for county engineers to plan and program road maintenance and improvements. One possible remedy is to input more current and less subjective infrastructure condition data. The IPMP was initially developed to satisfy the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) requirement that federal-aid-eligible highways be managed through a pavement management system. Currently all metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) in Iowa and 15 of Iowa's 18 RPAs participate in the IPMP. The core of this program is a statewide data base of pavement condition and construction history information. The pavement data are collected by machine in two-year cycles. Using pilot areas, researchers examined the implications of using the automated data collected for the IPMP as input to the need study computer program, HWYNEEDS. The results show that using the IPMP automated data in HWYNEEDS is feasible and beneficial, resulting in less volatility in the level of total need between successive quadrennial need studies. In other words, the more current the data, the smaller the shift in total need.

History and Design of Iowa's Highway Maintenance and Weighing Facilities, 2003

In June 2001, the Iowa Department of Transportation announced the imminent closure and disposal of selected highway maintenance facilities as part of cost-cutting measures mandated by the Iowa legislature, an action that was to be completed by July 31, 2001. The DOT recognized that some of these facilities might be "historical sites," which in the Iowa Code are defined as any district, site, building or structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places or identified as eligible for listing in the National Register by the State Historic Preservation Office. Section 303 of the Code requires state agencies to "enter into an agreement with the Department of Cultural Affairs [in which the SHPO is located] to ensure the proper management, maintenance and development of historical sites." The DOT saw this disposal action as an opportunity to compile information about its highway maintenance facilities that could be employed in development of a management program for historic highway maintenance facilities in the future. Subsequently, the DOT authorized a similar study of highway weigh stations.

06014-007 Lower Coldwater-Palmer Creek Watershed Final Report

Lower Coldwater and Palmer Creeks in Butler and Floyd counties are subwatersheds of the Cedar River, which provides drinking water to Cedar Rapids, IA. The increasing concentration of nitrate+nitrate in the river is of concern to the Cedar Rapids water utility, and IDNR snapshot monitoring shows Coldwater and Palmer to be significant potential sources (above the 90th percentile for subwatersheds monitored). Both creeks are also on the Iowa Section 303(d) list of impaired waters (aquatic life). Citizens of these predominantly agricultural watersheds organized the Coldwater-Palmer Watershed Improvement Association to deal proactively with nonpoint source pollutants from crop and livestock operations through a performance-based environmental management program. The locally-adapted program implemented by the Coldwater-Palmer watershed council rewards participants for environmental accomplishments - soil quality improvement and nutrient source reduction as measured by accepted, scientifically-based tests and models. Most of the locally­appropriate BMPs used to improve performance are undertaken voluntarily at participants' initiative. WIRB funds will be combined with funding from the Iowa Com Growers Association and significant in-kind support from the Cedar River Watershed Monitoring Coalition, Iowa State University Extension and other partners. The project will result in sustainable reduction in nutrient loading achieved with voluntary participation of a majority of watershed farm operators.

Integrated Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program, 2002

Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program produced by Iowa Departmment of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Integrated Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program, 2004

Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program produced by Iowa Departmment of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Integrated Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program, 2001

Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program produced by Iowa Departmment of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Integrated Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program, 2003

Farm/Livestock Management Demonstration Program produced by Iowa Departmment of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Access Management Awareness Program Phase II Report, TR-402, 1997

This report presents the results of a number of detailed Iowa access management case studies. Case studies were selected to provide a cross-section of locations and community sizes in Iowa as well as a variety of project types. Generally, access management projects completed during the mid-1990s were chosen as case studies. Projects ranging from driveway consolidation to full raised medians were analyzed on a before and after basis in terms of traffic safety, traffic operations, and adjacent business vitality. Sources of information used for the case study analysis included: road project files; traffic accident records; state sales tax records; and personal interviews of business owners, business customers, and local officials. The case study results from Iowa essentially confirm results of previous access management research from around the nation. Recent access in Iowa had significant, positive impacts in terms of traffic safety. The average reduction of annual accidents and accident rates on improved roadways was approximately 40%. Improvements in access management also led to significantly better roadway operations for most case studies. Although a small number of individual businesses do report sales losses and/or customer complaints once projects have been completed, access management projects in Iowa have not had an adverse impact on the majority of businesses located along them. In fact, some access management projects in Iowa seem to have contributed to an improved business environment along the corridors that have been improved. The results from the Iowa case studies presented in this report will be used to develop access management education materials for Iowa transportation professionals and other audiences interested in the impacts of access management.

Report and Specification for Transportation Program Management System, HR-394, 1997

TPMS is proposed as a distributed, PC-based system for automating two processes required for road improvements in Iowa: a) the annual preparation, submission, and approval of road improvement programs. b) the ongoing process of developing plans and obtaining approval for projects to be let for bids.

Transportation Program Management System, HR-394, 2003

HR-394 was a software and database development project. Via funding provided by the Iowa Highway Research Board, the Iowa County Engineer's Association Service Bureau oversaw the planning and implementation of an Internet based application that supports two major local-government transportation project activities: Project programming and Development tracking. The goals were to reduce errors and inconsistencies, speed up the processes, link people to both project data and each other, and build a framework that could eventually support a 'paperless' work flow. The work started in 1999 and initial development was completed by the fall of 2002. Since going live, several 'piggy back' applications have been required to make the Programming side better fit actual work procedures. This part of the system has proven adequate but will be rewritten in 2004 to make it easier to use. The original development side module was rejected by the users and so had to be rewritten in 2003. The second version has proven much better, is heavily used, and is interconnected with Iowa DOT project data systems. Now that the system is in operation, it will be maintained and operated by the ICEA Service Bureau as an ongoing service function.

Access Management Research and Awareness Program : Phase IV, 1999

Access management involves balancing the dual roles that roadways must play - through travel and access to property and economic activity. When these roles are not in proper balance, the result is a roadway system that functions sub-optimally. Arterial routes that have a too high driveway density and provide overly extensive access to property have high crash rates and begin to suffer in terms of traffic operations. Such routes become congested, delays increase, and mean travel speeds decline. The Iowa access management research and awareness project has had four distinct phases. Phase I involved a detailed review of the extensive national access management literature so lessons learned elsewhere could be applied in Iowa. In Phase II original case study research was conducted in Iowa. Phase III of the project concentrated on outreach and education about access management. Phase IV of the Iowa access management project extended the work conducted during Phases II and III. The main work products for Phase IV were as follows: 1) three additional before and after case studies, illustrating the impacts of various access management treatments on traffic safety, traffic operations, and business vitality; 2) an access management handbook aimed primarily at local governments in Iowa; 3) a modular access management toolkit with brief descriptions of various access management treatments and considerations; and 4) an extensive outreach plan aimed at getting the results of Phases I through IV of the project out to diverse audiences in Iowa and elsewhere.

Burden of Diabetes in Iowa 1991-2009, Final Report, May 2010

The Iowa Diabetes Prevention and Control Program provides educational opportunities for health care providers via the Iowa Communications Network interactive fiber optic system. The program also certifies diabetes outpatient education programs in Iowa based on minimum criteria for quality programs. In Iowa during the past 20 years, the prevalence rate of diagnosed diabetes increased dramatically among adults: Between 1991 and 2009 the crude diabetes prevalence rate rose by 84%, from 3.8% to 7.0%. Between these years, the age‐adjusted adult diagnosed diabetes prevalence rate increased by 64%, rising from 3.7% to 6.4%. During the 18 years 1991‐93 through 2006‐08, the number of Iowa adults with diagnosed diabetes more than doubled, increasing from 78,000 to 162,000. While the Iowa Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), upon which the numbers cited above are based, provides reliable state‐level self‐reported data on adults with diagnosed diabetes, it is unable to provide estimates of undiagnosed diabetes. National estimates put the prevalence of undiagnosed adult diabetes at about 5%, raising the estimated adult diabetes prevalence rate in Iowa to 12% (280,000 adults) (Cowie,2009). Another 5% of all Iowa adults are estimated to have diagnosed pre‐diabetes, while 25% of all Iowa adults, based on national estimates from the 2005‐06 National Health and Nutrition and Examination Survey (NHANES), likely have undiagnosed pre‐diabetes. (Cowie, 2009)